Posted on 08/16/2018 6:43:20 PM PDT by SunkenCiv
The next time you feel like taking the path of least resistance, consider the fate of humankind's ancestral predecessor, Homo erectus: According to the authors of a new study published in PloS One, laziness may have precipitated the early humans' extinction, leaving them unable -- and unwilling -- to adapt to changing environments... The team found that H. erectus tended to pursue "least-effort strategies" when crafting tools and collecting resources, even sticking to one generic tool for most activities. In a statement, lead author Ceri Shipton, an archaeologist at ANU, notes that the primitive peoples "really don't seem to have been pushing themselves." He adds, "I don't get the sense they were explorers looking over the horizon. They didn't have that same sense of wonder that we have." ...Comparatively, Neanderthals and early Homo sapiens expended much energy on resource collection. These later species, according to a press release, often climbed mountains in search of high-quality stone and labored to transport the heavy rocks back to camp. As the region's rivers dried up, creating the dry Saudi Arabian desert seen today, Shipton theorizes that H. erectus was unable to locate increasingly scarce water. Ultimately, the environment simply became too dry to sustain its population Laziness and conservative tendencies -- as represented by the consistent use of least-effort tool-making strategies despite a changing environment -- likely exacerbated the species' downfall.
(Excerpt) Read more at smithsonianmag.com ...
Keeps 'em guessing.
According to my wise Dad, necessity isn’t the mother of invention; laziness is.
It’s worked for me.
:)
For that, I love you.
:D
My Homo Erectus has not declined!
Ask the ladies.... : )
"If I want directions, I'm not askin' the guy with one tooth, I'm askin' the guy with one leg, because he definitely knows the easiest way to get there." -- Dave Attell
Thanks, I'll watch that in a few.
lol The People Magazine caliber of faux president.
I wholeheartedly agree.
Yeah, I’ll say.
No, it is when Homo Erectus became Homo Non-Erectus that certain subspecies began to peter out (pun intended).
Nothing like getting the story straight.
I thought the Blue Pill was supposed to help with that problem.
Maybe their feet hurt.
Maybe they had no sense of direction.
Maybe they didn’t follow herding and migratory mammals.
Maybe they were afraid of water and the mysteries beneath the surface.
Maybe they were simply dullards (stupid).
The possibles are infinite and science has no way of determining any answer, which demonstrates the laziness of scientific postulation.
Carl Sagan was on the right track when he stated that “extinction is the rule, survival is the exception.”
I can listen to On Your Feet or on Your Knees for hours on end. A few of the little DoodleBobs and I got to meet Eric Bloom and Buck Dharma after a show...very polite gentlemen.
Sounds like an early experiment in Socialism - too many got tire of supporting the lazy ones and they stopped their activities too...
I was going to read the entire story. But, damn...it just seemed so long.
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